Actions Speak Louder Than Words
by mshutts
Summary: “Have you ever noticed how odd Sesshoumaru acts towards you?” Inuyasha has an... interesting conversation. hints of possible Sess/Inu thoughts/actions
1. the talk

Actions Speak Louder Than Words

By: mshutts

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of the characters mentioned herein.

Warning: Hints of possible incestuous thoughts/actions.

- - - - -

"Have you ever noticed how odd Sesshoumaru acts towards you?"

"Hungh?"

"You know, when you're fighting. He acts different towards you than he acts towards anyone else."

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow. "Different, how?"

"Well, for one he always ignores everyone else who is on the battlefield in favor of bickering with you."

"That doesn't mean anything."

"You do the same, you know."

"Of course I fucking pay more attention to him than anyone else on the battlefield. In case you haven't noticed, he is by far the most dangerous person there. It's my job to protect all of you. If I wasn't paying attention to him with all my senses, he'd kill any of you in a second."

"But it's not just that, Inuyasha. It's not just about protecting us. When you face him on the battlefield, even if there is another enemy present, you two go off into your own world. Everything else just fades into the background and all that seems to matter to either of you is the other."

He rolled his eyes. "Just because I'm keeping my eyes on the largest threat don't mean nothing."

"Whatever. You have to admit that he still treats you differently than anyone else."

"Of course he does. I'm the half-breed abomination tainting our bloodline. He detests me."

"Sometimes I don't know if I actually believe he thinks that."

"What's that supposed to mean? Of course he believes it! He says it all the time!"

"Just because he says something doesn't mean it's actually true or even what he really thinks. Maybe it's just what he WANTS to think."

"You feeling alright?" he asked raising his hand to his companion's forehead where it was readily wacked away.

"I'm just fine, thank you."

"Then what's with the crazy talk?"

"It's not crazy talk. Haven't you ever noticed how he touches you?"

"Touches me? You mean like throwing me into trees touching me?"

"Yeah."

"What of it?"

"Do you know of anyone else he touches?"

Inuyasha adopted a highly confused look. "Why would I want to know of anyone else that bastard touches?"

"That's just my point. I don't think he DOES touch anyone else. Well, except for maybe Rin."

"Rin?"

"That little girl who follows him around."

"Oh. Wait, you think he throws her into trees?"

"No!"

"Then, what does she have to do with anything?"

"You are so impossible sometimes, Inuyasha! The point isn't how he touches her versus how he touches you. It's that there is ANY touching at all."

"I don't follow."

"Ok, look, Sesshoumaru doesn't like to be touched, right?"

"Right."

"He doesn't really like to touch others, right?"

"Right."

"So why does he touch you?"

"It's kind of hard to hold someone up in the air by their throat if you're not touching them."

"Well, yes, I suppose that would be the case. But you're missing the point. WHY would he want to hold you up in the air? Surely there must have been some other way to get his point across."

"Maybe he wanted to make sure I was listening."

"Maybe he wanted to touch you."

"You sure you're feeling alright? I could always find a healer for you."

"I'm serious. He doesn't touch anyone else. He could use many other methods to attack you and make his point that would not involve any sort of physical contact whatsoever with you. But there have been several times he hasn't used those methods."

"You ever think I might just piss him off so bad he forgets to remain completely aloof?"

"You ever think he might be using the fights as an excuse to touch you? Maybe he actually has feelings for you but doesn't know how to reconcile them with what he has been taught or what he believes."

"Now I know you're crazy. The only feelings Sesshoumaru has for me is a desire for me to die by his claws."

"But that doesn't explain why he's always so hyper focused on you."

"Hungh?"

"Every time we run into him, he looks at YOU. He attacks YOU. He threatens YOU. He talks to YOU. He fights YOU. He touches YOU. The rest of us might as well not even exist."

"So? He just doesn't see you puny humans as a threat."

"But it's not just him. Every time we run into him, you look at HIM. You attack HIM. You threaten HIM. You talk to HIM. You fight HIM. You touch HIM. You even ignore us the same way he does. If any of us try to get involved, you both tell us to butt out."

"It's not your fight."

"You don't mind when it's any other demon and we decide to get involved."

"That's not the same thing."

"How so?"

"He's my brother. It's complicated."

"So just because he's your brother, you don't think we should get involved?"

"I THINK it's none of your business."

Sigh. "You know, if it wasn't for the fact that he was your brother, I would wonder if Sesshoumaru was vying for your affections."

Inuyasha recoiled as if struck. "What the FUCK are you talking about?!"

"Just that he always seems to pay you an inordinate amount of attention."

The skeptical look on the hanyou's face demanded a more in depth answer from his companion. "Like we were talking about before. Him touching you. Him focusing on you to the exclusion of all else on the battlefield."

"I fail to see how that has ANYTHING to do with him being romantically interested in me."

"I wasn't saying he was romantically interested in you. You're related for heaven's sakes. I was just saying, were it anyone else, I would think the amount of attention he pays to you might constitute an interest in other things."

"So, let me get this straight, trying to kill me on a semi-regular basis would supposedly indicate a desire for a romantic relationship?"

"It does for some people."

"That's fucked up."

"Maybe," shrug, "but there are a lot of people who like strong, dominating partners. For some, the fighting would be a real turn-on."

"If you say so."

"It's true. And, if I understand correctly, most female youkai are the type that would look for a strong, dominant partner. So, maybe all this fighting with Sesshoumaru would be considered courtship behavior by youkai… if you weren't related."

Inuyasha's eyes got huge at the implications.

"Don't worry, Inuyasha. I'm sure there's nothing to be concerned about. After all, he's your brother. There's no way he would be interested in having a romantic relationship with a family member."

The hanyou tried to look as if he had brushed the idea off just as easily as his friend. "Of course not. Don't be ridiculous."

However, no matter how hard Inuyasha tried to brush it off as being completely ludicrous, the conversation kept coming back to haunt him. He was sure that his friend was wrong in interpreting the youkai lord's actions. But, what if his companion was right?

- - - - -

Any clue who the other half of the conversation is? I'm curious as to your thoughts.

Well, this piece just came to me. I readily admit that it is a little odd. I just had the urge to write it down and share.

Let me know what you think. All reads and/or review are greatly appreciated.


	2. the aftermath

Actions Speak Louder than Words: The Aftermath

by: mshutts

Disclaimer: I do not own anyone here-in.

Warning: implied incestuous attraction

* * * * *

It was over three months since he had that conversation with his friend and he still couldn't get it out of his head. He had been doing everything in his power to stay away from his elder brother ever since, trying not to be too obvious about it.

So far, it had worked. He had caught a brief scent of his brother once or twice, but had insisted that his group keep moving instead of resting and slightly altered their course so as to not meet up with him.

But, no matter how much he avoided his brother during the day, he could not avoid the thoughts at night. He could not get away from the confusion. That one conversation had called everything he thought he knew about his relationship with his brother into question.

Every word, every action, every look, now seemed to have a deeper, hidden, meaning to it. Previous fights would play on a continuous loop through his mind and he was starting to get exhausted. He could no longer sleep at night. All he would dream of would be his brother leering at him.

He had even had one truly frightening dream of Sesshoumaru giving him a come-hither look and blowing him a kiss. He had woken up with a shout in a cold sweat and was still amazed he had not fallen out of his tree. Of course, trying to explain the shout which had woken up the rest of the camp away without telling them why he had screamed like a girl was not fun either.

So, of course, as was bound to happen seeing as how wonderfully his day had been going so far, his brother reappeared. Later, he would blame it on lack of sleep and the new moon being that night. But at the moment he had no excuse for his reaction.

As soon as he saw his brother appear, he could feel his eyes on him, sizing him up. But to him, with all those thoughts he had been having, it felt as if he was being mentally undressed by those eyes. He yelled, "Stop looking at me!" and drew tetsusaiga, ready to fight.

Not realizing where he held the sword, when he saw Sesshoumaru's eyes drift down to the sword, he thought they were looking somewhere completely different and responded accordingly. "Keep your eyes up here, you fucking lecher!"

When one eyebrow raised in inquiry, instead of stopping to think about it, Inuyasha immediately verbally assaulted his elder brother, "I know where you were looking! You're a pervert and I'm NOT INTERESTED!"

"Interested in what, half-breed?" came the dispassionate voice.

"You know what, bastard! And stop it with the pet names!"

"I was unaware that 'half-breed' was a… 'pet name', I believe you called it."

"Shut up!" Inuyasha yelled, following his first impulse when angered, flailing out at the offending party with whatever was near at hand, tetsusaiga in this case. As he rushed towards his brother with tetsusaiga, solely focused on wiping the superior look off his brother's face, he forgot momentarily why he was trying to stay AWAY from Sesshoumaru.

With demonic speed, Sesshoumaru drew tokijin and blocked tetsusaiga. It happened so fast that the hanyou didn't even see it. All Inuyasha knew was that he had attacked in a rage and now he finally found himself inches away from his brother, looking straight into his face, through the crossed swords.

Suddenly recalling why he had been avoiding his brother the past few months, he shrieked in surprise and jumped back as far away from the demon as he could, yelling, "Stay away from me, you pervert!"

Unfortunately, this comment only caused Sesshoumaru to follow him. "You have called me a pervert several times now, little brother," the demon said dispassionately. "Was there something you wanted to tell me?" he continued with a slight raise of the eyebrow.

Once again, Inuyasha was scrambling backwards, trying very hard to put distance between him and his sibling who seemed to be quite intent on stalking him and doing THINGS to him. Or, at least, that was what the ramblings in the back of his mind were insisting.

"Damn it, you sicko! I said, 'Stay away!' I am not just going to stand there while you… you… you… molest me!" the hanyou gasped out.

Ok, now he could feel everyone looking at him like he had lost his mind. But, he refused to be embarrassed. Damn it! Sesshoumaru was trying to defile him! He couldn't just allow that to happen!

"And what, exactly gave you the idea that I would want to… molest… a filthy hanyou like you?" the demon lord asked in disgust.

"Don't think I haven't seen it!" Inuyasha countered.

"Truly any small amount of intellect you might have once had has left you, hanyou."

"Fuck you, bastard!" Inuyasha cried, once again allowing his rage to overpower his common sense and tried another time to attack the demon lord. This time, Sesshoumaru didn't bother to meet the tetsusaiga. He neatly dodged it, hitting Inuyasha's wrist, effectively knocking the sword away from him before appearing in front of Inuyasha and grabbing the half-demon around his throat.

Lifting his younger brother from the ground, he gave Inuyasha a firm shake which only served to enrage the teen even more.

"Let go of me, you lecher! I ain't interested in your sick little games! Go find someone else to get off on!" he yelled, continuing to struggle.

"This grows tiresome. What so called evidence do you believe you have to support this ludicrous claim of yours, little brother?"

"How about the fact that you're touching me right now, pervert?!"

"You must be joking," came the emotionless reply.

"How am I supposed to know what kind of sick stuff you get your jollies off of? Maybe you think of holding me by the throat while you jerk off!"

"I do not 'jerk off' as you put it. I assure you, had I any desire of a sexual nature, I would find it quite easy to locate someone to sate it."

"Yeah, right, you fucking frigid bastard! I bet you couldn't get any if you were the last person on earth!"

"This conversation is insane," the older demon stated coldly, throwing Inuyasha over to where his friends were before turning and beginning to walk away.

"Hey! Where are you going, asshole? Did I hit a nerve?"

He paused, and without even turning around, said, "I refuse to fight with someone who has taken leave of his senses. It would be dishonorable to kill you when you are in such a state. I shall return and kill you when you are yourself again." He then continued on his way.

"As if, you letch. We both know that I'll be the one to kill you!" Inuyasha shouted at the retreating back. There was no response and he couldn't help but feel a strange sense of relief. It looked like he was safe from the bastard's lust for one more day at least.

He then turned towards his little pack all of whom were looking at him as if his brother was correct and he had, in fact, lost his mind. Still feeling irritated and defensive, Inuyasha barked, "What are you standing there waiting for? We got shards to find! Let's go!" and walked down the path they had been on before this mess had started.

As he sensed his pack slowly falling into place behind him, he mused, 'Imagine the nerve of that bastard, acting like he didn't know what I was talking about. Feh. It had to be a trick. Now that I'm on to his little game, he won't get me with it. I'll make sure of it.'

* * * * *

I'm sorry, I couldn't help it. I was rereading 'Actions Speak Louder than Words' and this popped into my head.

To be perfectly honest, I don't know if I plan on adding any more to this or just leaving it like that. It'll most likely depend on if another idea hits me or not.

As always, thank you for reading and/or reviewing.


	3. Myouga has his say

Actions Speak Louder than Words

by mshutts

disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters here-in.

warning: implied incestuous relationship (or implied attempt at beginning an incestuous relationship)

Chapter 3: Myouga Has His Say

- - - - -

'Myouga! You'll tell them I'm not crazy won't you?"

"My lord?"

"Tell them I'm not crazy!"

"Um, why do they think you're crazy, Master Inuyasha?"

"He has been acting unusual," commented Miroku.

"He had a fight with Sesshoumaru and completely freaked out, you mean," elaborated Shippo.

"I did NOT freak out! Besides Sesshoumaru was trying to do THINGS to me!" interjected Inuyasha.

"Oh, honestly, Inuyasha. He was not!" Kagome shrieked.

"Yes, he was! You saw what he was doing!" Inuyasha cried in outrage.

"He wasn't DOING anything! He barely even attacked you!" Kagome continued, getting more frustrated.

"He was trying to molest me!" Inuyasha yelled back, equally annoyed.

"Molest you?" Myouga questioned, confused.

"He keeps touching me and shit," Inuyasha expounded.

"Really? How?" the flea probed.

"Oh, come on! You can't honestly be buying into this madness!" Kagome exclaimed.

"Well, touching is important, especially among inuyoukai," Myouga explained patiently. "For instance, mating rituals among dog demons are always initiated with touch."

"Mating rituals?" questioned everyone in the hut with mixed reactions from confusion and shock to outright horror in Inuyasha's case.

"Oh, yes. Dog demon mating rituals are quite complex. First, there is a battle to determine who the dominant will be. Although I suppose it is really more of a series of battles. Why, when the Great Dog General first began the mating ritual with Lord Sesshoumaru's mother, they fought off and on for decades. For, you see, the submissive must accept that they are the submissive or the mating cannot progress any further. If the two are very close in power, which they generally are, it can take decades or even centuries for them to finally move to the next stage."

"So you can tell who an inuyoukai is interested in mating by watching who they fight?" Sango asked, intrigued.

"Oh, no, it's not like that at all. Dog demons love fighting. They fight with anyone who is willing to fight with them as a general rule. No, the differences between a courting pair and a simple fight is very subtle. In fact, it is often not until after the pair has moved on to the next stage of courtship that one can even tell they were courting."

"Let me get this straight: the courtship is begun through fighting? That doesn't make any sense! Who would want to be with someone who had beat the living daylights out of them repeatedly for years?" Kagome asked.

"It is not just the fights, Kagome. It is how the fights are done. The purpose of the fights is not only to determine dominance but to get the other used to their touch. As I said, inuyoukai are very sensitive about touching. In a courtship fight, for instance, there would always be a touch of skin to skin at some point. In a regular fight, the dog demon would not even allow their opponent to touch them, but in a courtship fight… well, the touch is half the point," he attempted to clarify.

"But I thought you said there was no way to tell if they were courting or fighting until after they had moved on to the second stage," Miroku pointed out.

"No, I said it was a subtle difference. The touches I mentioned are often fleeting, no more than a slight brush. Those brushes, while evident to the two fighting, are often missed entirely by any audience there might be. There are other things as well: the decision to use a claw attack instead of a sword or other weapon would fall in line with a courtship fight, or, perhaps, grabbing the opponent in an offensive stance."

As Myouga was talking, Inuyasha was freaking out more and more. That was describing his encounters with Sesshoumaru to a T. How is it that his retainer had never thought to give him all this critical information before? Had he been involved in the first stage of a courtship ritual with his brother for years? But how could he have been? He had been unaware of it. You couldn't be entered into one of these things without knowing about it, could you?

Desperately needing answers, Inuyasha asked, "Hey, old man, do both parties have to be aware that they are starting a courtship ritual?"

"Why, no, Master Inuyasha. In fact, neither party need be aware of it for the first portion to commence. It is generally advisable for them to figure it out before the second portion begins, though."

"What happens if they don't figure it out by then?" Inuyasha asked with morbid curiosity.

"Well, they generally begin freaking out, my lord."

"What?"s came from around the room at this statement.

"Well, you see, the second stage is getting used to being in each other's presence. If you are aware you are in the courtship part of the mating ritual, it is quite simple. You simply go to see your intended once every week or so and spend a few hours with them.

"But if the courting pair are unaware that they are courting and they enter the second stage, all of the sudden they find themselves being drawn to where the other half of the pair is and having no idea why. If they continue to be obtuse about it long enough, they begin to get paranoid that the other one is stalking them because their youki force them to find each other over and over and over again.

"As you can see, not figuring it out can be a real mess. But, don't worry, that hasn't happened to a pair in centuries."

"But, what if one of them doesn't WANT to court?" Inuyasha asked.

"Doesn't want to court? Well, it's quite simple. They simply refuse to touch the other and try not to let the other touch them."

That was it? That was all there was to it? Inuyasha could hardly believe his luck. All he had to do was not touch Sesshoumaru and his brother would be forced to stop this courtship ritual he had started. It was so easy. He was sure it would work and determined to put it into action the next time he saw him.

Feeling immensely better, Inuyasha simply left the room with a "thanks, flea," over his shoulder before going off to sleep in his tree ignoring the rest of the continuing conversation. He already had his answer and besides, he had a lot of shuteye to catch up on.

- - - - -

Thank you for reading and/or reviewing. I am just having a little too much fun writing this. Oh, and in case you are concerned, I have no real intention of making this too serious. Although, it is looking like there are going to be more chapters now. No idea where it's going though.


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